InterMat Staff

State runner-up Jacob Wright (Dinuba, Calif.) verbally committed to Fresno State University on Wednesday afternoon. The projected 141/149 pound wrestler in college finished second in the state tournament this past season at 138 pounds, having also qualified for state as a freshman at 120 pounds. Wright is ranked No. 56 overall in the Class of 2017, and is the initial commit in this class for Fresno State, whose program is re-starting next fall. However, the Bulldogs have three additional commitments already to their program from Clovis alumni. Isaiah Hokit and Khristian Olivas will be transferring from Drexel and Utah Valley back to their home area, and project to compete as 141 and 149 pound wrestlers; each was a 2015 graduate from Clovis. Josh Hokit originally committed to Drexel, but will be starting his college career at Fresno State in the fall of 2017 after graduating as the No. 41 overall Class of 2016 prospect. He projects as a 184 pound wrestler, and ended the 2015-16 season ranked No. 6 at 182 pounds.

A trio of US Olympic wrestling team members and a quartet of college coaches are among the featured guests on this week's Takedown TV, Takedown Wrestling announced Wednesday. Among this week's features: Cal State Bakersfield head coach Manny Rivera 2016 US Olympians Kyle Snyder, Andy Bisek, Robert Smith Rutgers head coach Scott Goodale previews the "Battle at the Birthplace" outdoor dual Oregon State head coach Jim Zalesky Olympic medalist Soronzonbold Battsetseg's trailer from United World Wrestling Bellator Lightweight Champion (and former Missouri mat star) Michael Chandler feature Lyon College head wrestling coach reacts to UFC 200 Watch this week's episode here ... or at the Takedown Wrestling's YouTube Channel. In addition, Takedown Wrestling TV is aired on these television networks. All air times are Central. Cablevision: Sundays at 4 p.m. Charter Cable: Thursday at 6:30 p.m., Friday 11:30 p.m. and Monday 2:30 p.m. Comcast Cable: Friday at 5:00 p.m. Cox Cable: Sunday 9:30 a.m. Fight Network HD: Sundays at 4:00 p.m. KWEM, Stillwater, Oklahoma: Tuesday 7:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Long Lines Cable: Daily at 5:30 p.m. Mediacom Cable: Sundays at 10:30 a.m. MidCo Sports Network: Saturday 10:00 a.m. and Sunday at 9:00 a.m. SECV8: Friday at 5:00 p.m.

Ohio's Dylan D'Emilio was a Fargo champion last summer in the Cadet freestyle competition (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com) Fargo. One word that means so much within the scholastic age wrestling community. The ASICS/Vaughan Junior and Cadet Nationals return yet again to Fargo, North Dakota, starting this coming weekend. Competing in Greco-Roman and freestyle will be the nation's top high school aged wrestlers, both boys and girls. The event starts on Saturday with the Cadet Women's freestyle tournament. The first session will commence at 2 p.m. CT, while the medal matches are slated for a second session starting at 7 p.m. Male wrestlers make their debut in the FARGODOME on Sunday with the Cadet Greco-Roman tournament. Two sessions of wrestling will take place, one at 9 a.m. and the other at 3 p.m. By then, there will be semifinal matches set up on the front side of the bracket, which will take place in a Monday morning session starting at 9 a.m. The Cadet Greco-Roman medal matches are slated for 2 p.m. Cadet level wrestlers have birth dates in either 2000 or 2001. Also competing on Monday will be Junior level wrestlers. Males will be competing in the opening day of Greco-Roman, with two sessions, one at 9 a.m. and the other at 6 p.m. Female wrestlers will compete in freestyle, their opening session at 6 p.m. Junior level wrestlers were in 9th through 12th grade during the 2015-16 school year. Quarterfinal and semifinal matches, along with consolation matches to determine All-American honors will take place on Tuesday starting at 9 a.m. with medal matches in Greco-Roman at 2:15 p.m., and the Women's freestyle at 5:45 p.m. One week from today starts the rather high profile Cadet (male) freestyle event, along with the complete contesting of the Junior Women's Duals. Both events will have two sessions on July 20 starting at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. CT. Cadet freestyle will continue with two rounds on Thursday, July 21, one that includes the quarterfinals at 9:30 a.m. and one that includes the semifinals at 3:30 p.m. It is at that time, one week from Thursday morning when the Junior freestyle event commences. This three-day event is as important a trio of days as any on the scholastic wrestling calendar. The assemblage of talent that is present in this field is impressive, as are the matchups of high-end talent that happen throughout the tournament. Day one in Junior freestyle sets up the round of 16 on the front side of the draw, with wrestling on Thursday taking place in sessions at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. As previously mentioned, the quarterfinals in Cadet freestyle take place on Thursday morning, with semifinals and consolation matches to set up the medal round taking place Thursday afternoon. Those medal matches will take place on week from Friday starting at 2 p.m. With the core rounds of the Junior freestyle event sandwiching the Cadet freestyle medal matches on in the afternoon, Fargo Friday is arguably the biggest single day on the scholastic wrestling calendar in a given year. Junior freestyle sessions on Friday start at 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Round of sixteen and quarterfinals take place in the morning, while semifinals take place in the evening. The final session of the Fargo extravaganza is one week from Saturday, July 23, starting at 10 a.m. CT. Now that we all know the chronology of the upcoming competition, let's take a look at what will actually happen during the course of the events. Line bracketing For the third straight year, traditional double-elimination brackets will be used in Fargo, after many years of vertical pairing. UWW Cadet and Junior World Championships The Cadet and Junior World Championships are going to be held later in the calendar year then they were last year due to the Olympic Games being held in early-through-mid August. The Junior World event will be held in late August, while the Cadet World event is slated for early-to-mid September. There are many Fargo eligible wrestlers slated to participate on those teams. By virtue of the calendar, it is reasonable and plausible to see those wrestlers participate next week in Fargo. However, those decisions will have to be made in context of considering the upcoming World Championships -- relative training cycles, etc. The following UWW Cadet World Championships participants are Cadet eligible for Fargo: Kurt McHenry (Virginia) -- freestyle at 42 kilos Jalen Spuhler (Wisconsin) -- Greco-Roman at 42 kilos Aaron Cashman (Minnesota) -- freestyle at 50 kilos Malik Johnson (Missouri) -- Greco-Roman at 50 kilos Travis Wittlake (Oregon) -- freestyle at 76 kilos Gable Steveson (Minnesota) -- freestyle at 100 kilos Cohlton Schultz (Colorado) -- Greco-Roman at 100 kilos The following UWW Cadet World Championships participants are Junior eligible for Fargo: Malik Heinselman (Colorado) -- freestyle at 46 kilos Mosha Schwartz (Colorado) -- Greco-Roman at 46 kilos Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) -- freestyle at 54 kilos Real Woods (Illinois) -- Greco-Roman at 54 kilos Vitali Arujau (New York) -- freestyle at 58 kilos Jack Davis (Pennsylvania) -- Greco-Roman at 58 kilos Yianni Diakomihalis (New York) -- freestyle at 63 kilos Peyton Omania (California) -- Greco-Roman at 63 kilos David Carr (Ohio) -- freestyle at 69 kilos Max Wohlabaugh (Florida) -- Greco-Roman at 69 kilos Clay Lautt (Kansas) -- Greco-Roman at 76 kilos Jacob Warner (Illinois) -- freestyle at 85 kilos Brandon Whitman (Michigan) -- Greco-Roman at 85 kilos (runner-up, but Warner is freestyle only at Worlds) The following UWW Junior World Championships participants are Junior eligible for Fargo: Spencer Lee (Pennsylvania) -- freestyle at 50 kilos Daton Fix (Oklahoma) -- freestyle at 55 kilos Taylor Lamont (Utah) -- Greco-Roman at 60 kilos Mark Hall (Minnesota) -- freestyle at 74 kilos Kamal Bey (Illinois) -- Greco-Roman at 74 kilos Nick Reenan (Texas) -- Greco-Roman at 84 kilos Jordan Wood (Pennsylvania) -- freestyle at 120 kilos Returning Fargo champions Many wrestlers that won weight class titles in last year's Junior and Cadet Nationals can return for this year's event, though the vast majority of the Cadet champions will be moving up to the Junior level in next week's competitions. As a result, the Cadet National tournaments become a breeding ground for emerging stars and names to watch for in the upcoming seasons of scholastic wrestling. Cadet champions who can repeat at the Cadet level this coming year (listed by weight class in which they won their title last year): Jordan Decatur (Ohio) -- 106 pounds, freestyle Malik Johnson (Missouri) -- 106 pounds, Greco-Roman Nick Raimo (New Jersey) -- 120 pounds, double (both Greco-Roman and freestyle) Sammy Sasso (Pennsylvania) -- 132 pounds, freestyle Ryan Karoly (New Jersey) -- 160 pounds, freestyle Travis Wittlake (Oregon) -- 160 pounds, Greco-Roman Gable Steveson (Minnesota) -- 220 pounds, freestyle Cohlton Schultz (Colorado) -- 220 pounds, Greco-Roman Cadet champions that move up to the Junior level: Mosha Schwartz (Colorado) -- 88 pounds, double Malik Heinselman (Colorado) -- 94 pounds, double Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio) -- 100 pounds, freestyle Peter Ogunsanya (Illinois) -- 100 pounds, Greco-Roman Roman Bravo-Young (Arizona) -- 113 pounds, double Vitali Arujau (New York) -- 126 pounds, freestyle Patrick Ramirez (California) -- 126 pounds, Greco-Roman Alex Lloyd (Minnesota) -- 132 pounds, Greco-Roman Joe Lee (Indiana) -- 138 pounds, freestyle Andrew Merola (New Jersey) -- 138 pounds, Greco-Roman Anthony Artalona (Florida) -- 145 pounds, double Trevell Timmons (Illinois) -- 152 pounds, freestyle Max Wohlabaugh (Florida) -- 152 pounds, Greco-Roman Jacob Warner (Illinois) -- 170 pounds, double Jacob Raschka (Wisconsin) -- 182 pounds, freestyle Andrew Davison (Indiana) -- 182 pounds, Greco-Roman Jake Boyd (Missouri) -- 195 pounds, freestyle Brady Daniel (Maryland) -- 195 pounds, Greco-Roman Nick Boykin (Tennessee) -- 285 pounds, double Junior champions eligible to compete again: Jason Holmes (Arizona) -- 100 pounds, freestyle Jaret Lane (Pennsylvania) -- 100 pounds, Greco-Roman Louie Hayes (Illinois) -- 106 pounds, double Brandon Courtney (Arizona) -- 113 pounds freestyle Dack Punke (Illinois) -- 113 pounds, Greco-Roman Daton Fix (Oklahoma) -- 120 pounds, freestyle Dalton Duffield (Oklahoma) -- 120 pounds, Greco-Roman Gabe Townsell (Illinois) -- 126 pounds, Greco-Roman Taylor Lamont (Utah) -- 132 pounds, freestyle Mitch McKee (Minnesota) -- 132 pounds, Greco-Roman Hayden Hidlay (Pennsylvania) -- 152 pounds, Greco-Roman Beau Breske (Wisconsin) -- 170 pounds, freestyle Kamal Bey (Illinois) -- 170 pounds, Greco-Roman Nick Reenan (Texas) -- 182 pounds, double Wyatt Koelling (Utah) -- 195 pounds, Greco-Roman Jordan Wood (Pennsylvania) -- 220 pounds, freestyle Osawaru Odighizuwa (Oregon) -- 285 pounds, freestyle (do not expect him to participate, as he is going to be playing football at UCLA) Dante Jiovanetta (Florida) -- 285 pounds, Greco-Roman Rising freshmen to watch in Cadet Nationals As mentioned earlier in this article, the Cadet Nationals serve as proving ground for many an emerging star. Yes, that does include incoming freshmen. Last summer, five wrestlers combined to win seven stop signs at the Cadet Nationals before stepping on the high school mats. Among the top Class of 2020 wrestlers, some of the more likely to capture a stop sign include: No. 1 Beau Bartlett (Pennsylvania): Even though the 126-pound weight class in which he is most likely to compete will be a tough weight class, Bartlett has already shown to be more than competitive. He was champion at the Cadet Folkstyle tournament in early April, the first leg of the Cadet triple crown, and was a UWW Cadet freestyle All-American at 58 kilos (127.75 pounds) in early June. Bartlett will most likely be an underdog to returning double champion Nick Raimo at minimum. No. 2 Joshua Saunders (Missouri): He was runner-up to Bartlett at 126 pounds in Cadet folkstyle during the spring. Then he was one match from All-American honors at UWW Cadet freestyle competing at 54 kilos (119 pounds), with both losses coming to wrestlers not eligible to compete at the Cadet level in Fargo. Look for him to be in the hunt at 120 pounds, where he was a double champion at the Central Regional in May. No. 4 Jesse Vasquez (California): He was champion in Cadet folkstyle competing up at 120 pounds, during the first leg of the Cadet Triple Crown in early April. Vasquez then placed seventh in the 50 kilo (110 pound) weight class at the UWW Cadet freestyle tournament in early June, with both losses coming by a single point including one to defending Fargo freestyle champion D'Emilio; also with two wins over past Cadet All-Americans in Fargo. Look for him at 113 pounds, and to be among those in the mix (included in there would be Coltan Yapoujian, to whom he lost at the UWW Cadet freestyle tournament 2-1). No. 5 Braxton Amos (West Virginia): The very talented upper-weight went 11-2 between Greco-Roman and freestyle in contested matches at the Cadet Duals last month, with the loss in Greco-Roman being an unexpected outcome; the loss in freestyle was 8-2 against one of the nation's best rising juniors in Gavin Hoffman of Pennsylvania. Amos was undefeated in eleven contested matches at the Schoolboy Duals across the two styles in June of 2015. Though rising frosh in upper weights tend to struggle, look for Amos to make significant noise, even if it isn't in the form of that giant golden stop sign. No. 6 Jeremiah Reno (Missouri): Look for Reno to be among those in the hunt at 94 pounds, after a runner-up finish in the UWW Cadet freestyle tournament at 42 kilos (92 pounds) and winning a Roller World of Wrestling Triple Crown this year at 89 pounds in the 15-U division. His championship series loss at UWW Cadets came against the very talented Kurt McHenry of Virginia, though he did nab one of the three bouts; however, Reno would project to be the clear favorite excluding McHenry. Fargo coverage Keep your eye glued onto InterMat for Fargo coverage throughout the coming week including some event-specific previews and recaps, and well as a broad recap of the whole group of tournaments after the festivities are complete.

WATERLOO, Iowa -- The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum announced that three of the most prominent wrestlers in Greco-Roman history -- Jim Hazewinkel, Dave Hazewinkel and Lindsey Durlacher -- will be inducted into the Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions. The Minnesota Wrestling Club will be presented with the Legacy Award and Joe DeMeo will receive the Alan Rice Leadership Award. The Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions is located in the NWHOF Dan Gable Museum. The ceremony for the seventh class to be inducted will held on Oct. 22 at the Christensen Center Commons on the campus of Augsburg College in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The reception begins at 6 p.m. followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and the ceremony at 8 p.m. Contact the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum at (319) 233-0745 or dgmstaff@nwhof.org for more information on the Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions. Banquet tickets are $50 each and can be ordered online by clicking https://dgm-nwhof.ticketleap.com/7thgrhoc/ Dave and Jim Hazewinkel, identical twin brothers from Coon Rapids, Minnesota, were members of the 1968 and 1972 United States Greco-Roman Olympic teams and were both members of six consecutive World and Olympic teams from 1967 to 1972. Dave was the first American to win two World medals in Greco-Roman wrestling, earning a bronze medal in 1969 and a silver medal in 1970. Jim was also a member of the 1966 World team and his highest finish at the World Championships was fourth in 1969. The Hazewinkels were presented the Legacy Award by the Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions in 2012. Lindsey Durlacher helped lead the United States to its first Greco-Roman World Championship team title in 2007, finishing fifth. He was a silver medalist at the Pan American Championships in 2003, and again in 2007 after moving up a weight class. He won a bronze medal at 121 pounds at the 2006 World Championships, and was also a member of the USA team for the 2005 World Championships. He was the U.S. Open champion in 2006 and was runner-up in the event five times. Joe DeMeo was head coach of the U.S. Greco-Roman World team four times, and was a member of the Olympic coaching staff in 1976, 1980, 1988, and 1992. He was named National Coach of the Year three times by USA Wrestling, which named him Developmental Coach of the Year in 2005. The Minnesota Wrestling Club (sometimes called "The Minnesota Storm") has consistently supported the sport of wrestling since its formation in the 1960s. The team has won more than 20 national team championships and produced four USA national and Olympic team coaches. They had a domineering presence in the recent Olympic team trials, and continued their record of placing a wrestler on every USA Olympic wrestling team since 1964. Alan and Gloria Rice, namesakes of the hall of champions, have been instrumental to the success of Greco-Roman wrestling in the United States. Alan Rice was a Big Ten champion and an All-American for the University of Minnesota. In 1956 he won national titles in Greco-Roman and freestyle, and placed fifth at the Olympics. He was a coach of the 1972 Greco-Roman Olympic team. 7th Annual Alan & Gloria Rice Greco-Roman Hall of Champions Saturday, October 22, 2016, 6:00 PM - 10:00 PM Augsburg College, Christensen Center Commons, 720 22nd Avenue, South, Minneapolis, MN 55454 Honoring Hall of Champions Jim Hazewinkel Dave Hazewinkel Lindsey Durlacher (posthumously) Legacy Award Minnesota Wrestling Club Alan Rice Leadership Award Joe DeMeo Saturday, October 22, 2016 6:00 pm Reception 7:00 pm Dinner 8:00 pm Honors Ceremony ~business casual~

Mark Neumann Mark Neumann, a two-time NCAA All-American at University of Oklahoma in the 1970s, has announced his retirement as a teacher and wrestling coach after 39 years, the New Richmond (Wisconsin) News reported Monday. Neumann's career as a wrestler and coach flourished at opposite ends of the country, in both Wisconsin and Oklahoma. Neumann first stepped onto the mat at St. Croix Central High School on the Wisconsin-Minnesota border, where he was a two-time placer at the WIAA (Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association) state wrestling championships. As a junior, Neumann placed third at the 1972 WIAAs; he capped off his senior season with a perfect record and the 182-pound title at the 1973 WIAA state championships. After being recruited by nearly 100 schools, Neumann chose Oklahoma. Wrestling for long-time coach Stan Abel, Neumann earned back-to-back NCAA All-American honors in 1976 and 1977, placing fifth both years at 190 pounds. His performance helped the Sooners win the NCAA national championship in 1974, and finish in the top four at the Nationals in each of his four years on the team. In addition, Neumann was a two-time finalist at the Big 8 conference championships. Upon graduation from college, Neumann was hired to teach and coach wrestling in Guthrie, Okla., where he stayed for 15 years. His Guthrie team earned one state championship and was runner-up once. "We were ranked in the top five in the state most of the last seven or eight years," Neumann told the New Richmond News. The past 24 years, Neumann has served as a classroom instructor (teaching English) and varsity mat coach at New Richmond High School in west-central Wisconsin, not far from his hometown. Among the hundreds of young athletes he coached in nearly a quarter-century: his four sons, who can claim a combined 450 wins in their prep careers. Another reward for Neumann: Seeing how the dedication of his wrestlers in high school has benefitted them in life beyond the sport. "It's such a hard sport," said Neumann. "It teaches you persistence and perseverance. Wrestling is like life. You'd like it to be all sunshine and roses, but not everything turns out the way you want." Is Neumann stepping away from coaching for good? The wrestler/coach whose career spanned the Sooner State and America's Dairyland appears to be leaving the door open. "For my perspective, it would be good to take a year off and evaluate," said the coach whose career spanned nearly four decades. "I have no idea where my life will carry me."

Troy Steiner, head coach of the newly resurrected wrestling program at Fresno State, and pro wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer, will be featured guests on this week's edition of the On the Mat wrestling broadcast on Wednesday, July 13. Prior to being named to head up the Bulldogs wrestling program in May, Troy Steiner had been on the coaching staff at Oregon State for the past ten years. As a wrestler, he was a four-time NCAA All-American at University of Iowa, winning the 142-pound title at the 1992 NCAA championships. Meltzer is the 2016 winner of the Jim Melby Award during the 2016 George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame induction at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. On the Mat is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at 1650thefan.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday at 5 p.m. Central on AM 1650, The Fan. A podcast of the show is available on mattalkonline.com.

Hunter Bolen was a FloNationals runner-up (Photo/John Bishop) Two-time state champion Hunter Bolen (Christiansburg, Va.) made his verbal commitment to in-state Virginia Tech on Monday evening. The No. 35 overall recruit in the 2017 class is a two-time state champion after missing the post-season his freshman year due to injury. Bolen ended the 2015-16 season ranked No. 13 overall at 160 pounds, after a season in which he placed eighth in the Super 32 Challenge and runner-up at the FloNationals, both of those events coming at 152 pounds. He projects as a 165 pound wrestler in college.

Lane Dickeson, a redshirt freshman wrestler at Notre Dame College of Ohio last season and two-time Tennessee high school state championships medalist, was killed in a single-vehicle crash Sunday. He was 19. The 2015 Wilson Central High School graduate was at the wheel of his Subaru when he apparently lost control, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The vehicle left the road at approximately 4:30 p.m. Sunday and struck a tree outside Mt. Juliet, Tenn. Lane DickesonDickeson spent the 2015-2016 academic year as a redshirt freshman at NCAA Division II Notre Dame College in suburban Cleveland, but had made plans to transfer closer to home to Middle Tennessee State and wrestle there, according to multiple media reports in Tennessee. As a high school wrestler, Dickeson medaled twice at the TSSAA (Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association) Class AAA state tournament, as runner-up at 126 pounds in 2014, and placing sixth at 138 his senior year. He was a four-time state championships qualifier, a two-time region qualifier, and a three-time AAU All-American. Dickeson finished his prep career at 187 victories, placing him eighth all-time at Wilson Central. "Lane was one of the most successful wrestlers I've coached," WCHS head coach John Kramer told the Wilson Post. "Not just at Wilson Central but throughout my 28-year career. "Lane was part of that group that came up to Wilson Central and put program on the map. He will be greatly missed and remembered forever." Visitation will be at 4-8 p.m. Wednesday at Bond Memorial Chapel, 1098 Weston Drive, Mt. Juliet, and 4-6 p.m. Thursday at Cooks United Methodist Church, 7919 Lebanon Road, Mt. Juliet. Funeral services will be at 6 p.m. Thursday at Cooks United Methodist. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be made to the Wilson Central wrestling program. Members of the Wilson Central wrestling team will serve as pallbearers. In addition, an online memorial fund has been established to help Lane Dickeson's family with funeral expenses. As of Monday evening, approximately $750 of the $10,000 goal had been raised.

Marcus Coleman finished runner-up in the Cadet freestyle competition in Fargo (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Two-time state champion Marcus Coleman (Ames, Iowa) will be staying very close to home for college, as he verbally committed to Iowa State University on Monday afternoon. The projected 174/184 pound wrestler in college ended the 2015-16 season ranked No. 16 overall nationally at 170 pounds, and is currently ranked No. 42 overall among all Class of 2017 prospects nationally. Coleman joins No. 13 Austin Gomez (Glenbard North, Iowa) as a verbal commit to the Cyclones' 2017 recruiting class. He was also a Cadet National freestyle runner-up last summer, after winning Cadet folkstyle during the spring; and this spring placed fourth in Junior folkstyle.

The same weekend UFC 200 featured top mixed martial arts fighters such as Brock Lesnar, Daniel Cormier and Frankie Edgar in action in the Octagon in Las Vegas, parent organization Ultimate Fighting Championships finalized a deal to sell itself to talent management giant WME-IMG for approximately $4 billion, according to multiple media reports Monday. Backing the deal with WME-IMG -- the product of a merger between William Morris Endeavor (WME) and International Management Group (IMG) -- are the private equity heavyweights Silver Lake, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, and the investment firm of the billionaire Michael S. Dell, the New York Times reported. There have been rumors of a UFC sale since spring, but the company had denied being available for sale. In fact, UFC president Dana White had said, "We're not for sale," though he conceded, "But let me tell you what. If somebody shows up with $4 billion, we can talk." Just one week ago, White -- along with UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, one of two brothers who formed Zuffa, Inc. which had purchased UFC in 2000 for $2 million -- told the Los Angeles Times, "We own the UFC. We did not sell the UFC." (The deal was signed this past weekend.) White will remain as UFC president and retain a stake in ownership. Long-time UFC owners Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta will remain as minority investors. What does this sale mean to fans who purchase tickets to attend UFC events in person and watch at home thanks to pay-per-view? As WrestlingInc.com asked, "Should fans be concerned?" "Exact opposite. Sport is going to the next level." Lorenzo Fertitta, who is stepping down as CEO, said in a statement: "We're confident that the new ownership team of WME-IMG, with whom we've built a strong relationship over the last several years, is committed to accelerating UFC's global growth. Most importantly, our new owners share the same vision and passion for this organization and its athletes." The UFC sale makes sense to purchaser WME-IMG, as the organization represents a number of top MMA talent such as Ronda Rousey in negotiations for endorsements and movie deals, and the UFC itself. Just last year, WME-IMG purchased the Professional Bull Riders league. That purchase along with today's $4 billion deal for UFC helps propel WME-IMG to become a platform for digital media content, controlling various elements ranging from marketing to talent management to television and digital distribution. UFC has come a long way since the first Ultimate Fighting Championship event in November 1993 in Denver. When the Fertitta brothers purchased the organization in 2000, UFC was dealing with major challenges, including major financial losses, and significant organized opposition from a number of politicians, including Sen. John McCain, a former Navy wrestler who called it "human cockfighting," and former New York governor George Pataki, who had professional MMA banned from his state (a prohibition overturned just this year). In recent years, UFC has extended its reach around the world, and has become not only a financial titan -- with expanding coverage in mainstream and sports media -- but something of a star-making phenomenon, with a number of its athletes making names for themselves in commercial endorsements, TV shows, and movies. What's more, UFC has helped provide new competitive opportunities for former amateur wrestlers from Randy Couture to Daniel Cormier.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Purdue head wrestling coach Tony Ersland announced the addition of Jake Sueflohn as a volunteer assistant coach Monday. Sueflohn, who was recruited by Ersland during his time at Nebraska, was a four-time NCAA qualifier and four-time Big Ten Championships placewinner for the Huskers. Sueflohn will play a vital role in the growth and development of the Boilermakers' top-10 incoming class as well as the Boilermaker Regional Training Center. Jake Sueflohn works to finish a single against Kyle Langerderfer of Illinois (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com)"Growing the program is what needs to happen and continue to happen," Ersland said. "We've started a strong foundation, created the work ethic and got our guys focused on the right things and we're very excited about that. Jake is a continuation of that growth and development we think needs to happen year in and year out. "Jake is an absolute grinder," Ersland continued. "He is one of the hardest wrestling guys you will find out there; you'd be hard-pressed to find somebody like him. He has the grinder mentality, that great competitive drive when he's out there wrestling and that's a big deal for us. Obviously with our strong class that's coming in and good talent within the program, we need to continue to develop the understanding that it takes a lot of work and a lot of competitive drive to get it done and Jake can show our guys that." During his career at Nebraska, Sueflohn amassed a career record of 109-32 (.773) wrestling all but one season at 149 pounds. He was twice the Huskers' team leader in major decisions, racking up 35 in his career. "As a wrestler, Jake always brought an element of toughness to his wrestling," Ersland said. "He's a hard worker that is tough in his training, very focused in his mindset and very disciplined in his wrestling." Sueflohn qualified for the NCAA Championships at 149 pounds in 2013, 2014 and 2016 after qualifying at 141 as a true freshman in 2012. The Watertown, Wisconsin, native was the 149-pound runner-up at the Big Ten Championships as a junior in 2014 and as a sophomore in 2013. Sueflohn placed three times at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, highlighted by a runner-up finish in 2013. That same season he also brought home the Reno Tournament of Champions title at 149 pounds. Sueflohn was honored numerous times for his accomplishments on and off the mat. Sueflohn received the Nebraska Granite Award, which was bestowed for his toughness, the Most Dedicated Award and the Tom Osborne Citizenship Award. For his work in the classroom, Sueflohn earned a spot on the Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll four different semesters and was an Academic All-Big Ten selection in 2014. "I have always loved the Big Ten Conference," Sueflohn said. "When Purdue approached me about being the middleweight coach I had to take it. It's a great opportunity to begin my coaching career and it's something I couldn't pass up. I think I bring a lot of grit and a strong work ethic to the team, and along with the other coaches on staff, a lot of experience in the Big Ten." Ersland recruited Sueflohn out of Arrowhead High School where he was a two-time Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association champion while going 100-1 during his final two seasons. Sueflohn tallied a high school record of 188-10 (.950). He also earned All-America honors in 2011 with a third-place finish at 145 pounds at the ASICS/Vaughn Junior Freestyle National Championships. "I've always had a good relationship with Coach Ersland," Sueflohn said. "I've known him six years now and I think him and I see a lot of things eye-to-eye. I think working together will be pretty easy and I'm looking forward to working with him and the rest of the staff. I grew up watching Zach [Tanelli] and Tyrel [Todd] so I think it's awesome that I get to work with these guys now." Sueflohn will receive his Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism, with concentrations in communications, psychology and sociology, from Nebraska in August.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Former two-time All-American and University of Maryland wrestling alumnus Jimmy Sheptock ('14) will join the Terrapin staff this year as an assistant coach as announced by head coach Kerry McCoy Monday. Sheptock returns to his alma mater after a two-year stint at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pa. “I'm excited to be back at Maryland and help out the program that gave me so much,” said Sheptock. “This is a fantastic opportunity for me and I want to thank Coach McCoy for bringing me back to College Park. I'm ready to get to work and see what the future holds.” Sheptock helped guide the Dragons to their most dual meet victories (10) since the 2008-09 this past year, including a six-match win streak to end the season. The Dragons had six wrestlers reach the podium at the 2016 Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championships, the most since joining the conference. Sheptock helped guide two Drexel wrestlers to EIWA titles while seven Dragons qualified for the NCAA Championships under his tutelage. During his time at Drexel, Sheptock was responsible for the squad's day-to-day operations including practice planning, travel arrangements and marketing promotions for the team. “We're thrilled to have Jimmy back here at Maryland as a part of our staff,” said Kerry McCoy. “Jimmy is one of the best wrestlers to ever put on a Terrapin uniform, and will be a great example for our guys. Having coached him I know what kind of energy and focus he brings to the mat everyday, and he's done some big things at Drexel the past two seasons. It's exciting to bring a former Terp like Jimmy on board with our program. I'm looking forward to the season ahead.” Sheptock finished his Maryland career as one of the most accomplished wrestlers in program history as a three-time ACC Champion, three-time NCAA qualifier and two-time All-American at 174 and 184 pounds. The Northhampton, Pa. native amassed a 129-20 all-time record as a Terp, and was a perfect 51-0 in dual matches with 67 total bonus-point victories. Sheptock's 2013-14 season was one of the greatest individual runs in Maryland wrestling history, as he finished 32-1 and as the NCAA finalist, ACC Champion and Midlands Champion. He became the first-ever Maryland wrestler to obtain the No. 1 seed at the NCAA Championships and earn a No. 1 national ranking. Sheptock became just the fourth Terp to finish in the top-two in school history, and the first since Gobel Kline won the national championship in 1969. Sheptock earned his Masters of Sports Management while he was at Drexel and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Communication from Maryland.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Geoffrey Alexander, a four-time NCAA qualifier at the University of Maryland, has joined the Brown University wrestling program as an assistant coach, Brown head coach Todd Beckerman announced on Monday. "Our staff is excited to bring Geoffrey on board and believe that he can make an impact working with our lower weights," Beckerman said. "I coached Geoffrey during my time at Maryland and know that he brings a tremendous work ethic to all that he does on and off the mat." Alexander recorded 100 wins in his career at Maryland, becoming just the fourth wrestler in program history to reach the century mark in career wins. He earned a spot in the NCAA Championships in 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016. Alexander finished his career with a .690 winning percentage, a 45-15 (.750) mark in dual bouts, and 48 bonus-point victories. "I am truly grateful for this opportunity to coach at Brown University and look forward to working with some of the best and brightest student-athletes in the country," Alexander said. "I have known Coach Beckerman since my days as a high school wrestler, and I know that he expects nothing short of excellence in all aspects of his program." As a redshirt senior, Alexander made his fourth appearance at NCAAs after posting an undefeated 6-0 mark in Big Ten duals. In his redshirt season in 2013-14, he notched a 25-2 record and won four open tournaments. During the Terrapins' time in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Alexander placed twice at the league championship at 133 lbs., coming in second in 2012 and fifth in 2013. He earned All-ACC honors and helped Maryland take home the team title in 2012. Alexander finished a perfect 5-0 in ACC duals as a sophomore. A native of Pittsburgh, Pa., and a product of Shady Side Academy, Alexander gained a degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Maryland in 2016.

The first episode of Global Wrestling News for July has plenty of news about US Olympic wrestling as well as developments in high school and collegiate wrestling too. This week's show covers all the bases -- and then some -- with these feature segments: Interviews with the Cadet World Team along with head coach Brandon Slay. Is this our best team ever? Air Force's Dustin Kilgore and Sam Barber. Great hire? Wayne Boyd's "As I See It" NASCAR wrestling match. Do drivers make great wrestlers? And what about that play-by-play commentary? Yianni Diakomihalis and David Carr scrap on Instagram Ryan Taylor injury reactions Freshman Adam Busiello commits to Penn State. Was it too early? Alex Dieringer up for Best Male College Athlete ESPY. Will wrestling fans help him take down the competition? Ben Dermstadt -- Under Armour Wrestler of the Week This half-hour Global Wrestling News broadcast presents the news about all aspects of amateur wrestling, in a fast-paced sports news format featuring Scott Casber and Tony Hager, along with comments and opinions from wrestling aficionado Wayne Eric Boyd, who champions the oldest and greatest sport. Global Wrestling News is a subsidiary of Global Wrestling Championships and owned by Titan Mercury Wrestling Club. This week's show has already been posted at TheMat.com, TMWC1.com, and Takedown Wrestling's website. In addition, it is available on Takedown Wrestling's YouTube channel. What's more, you'll find Global Wrestling News on these cable, satellite and broadcast channels. (All times Central.) Cablevision: Sundays at 4 p.m. Charter Cable: Thursday at 6:30 p.m., Friday 11:30 p.m. and Monday 2:30 p.m. Cox Cable: Sunday 9:30 a.m. Fight Network HD: Sundays at 4:00 p.m. Long Lines Cable: Daily at 5:30 p.m. Mediacom Cable: Sundays at 10:30 a.m. MidCo Sports Network: Saturday 10:00 a.m. and Sunday at 9 a.m. Suddenlink Cable: Check your local listings. Multiple air times.

Former college wrestlers won four and lost two of their bouts at UFC 200 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Saturday night, with Brock Lesnar, Daniel Cormier, Cain Velasquez and T.J. Dillashaw leaving the Octagon with victories, while Frankie Edgar and Johny Hendricks lost their matches. Brock's back Four-and-a-half years ago, Brock Lesnar suffered a first-round TKO at the hands of Alastair Overeem at UFC 141, making what many assumed to be his last appearance in MMA. Brock LesnarAt UFC 200, the 2000 NCAA heavyweight champ for the University of Minnesota returned to the Octagon with a unanimous decision over Mark Hall. All three judges scored the fight 29-27, helping Lesnar break a two-fight MMA losing streak. "With his performance at UFC 200, Brock Lesnar once again proved he is one of the most special athletes of this generation," wrote Alex Schlinsky for MMAMania.com. "On just five weeks' notice, the former UFC Heavyweight champion took on the legendary striker and top ten contender Mark Hunt, and completely dominated 'The Super Samoan' on the mat." "Lesnar's explosive takedowns and impregnable top control led to a ferocious beating in the first and third rounds, and although the WWE superstar had some cardio issues, his performance was sensational." Sherdog.com reported that Lesnar looked good in the first five minutes, then went on to say, "At the start of the third, Lesnar shot and pulled down Hunt again. Lesnar dominated the round, though he was not dominating. He tried lobbing tired arms into Hunt's face. The crowd began booing as Lesnar stayed on top, occasionally hitting Hunt with rights to the head." "It took me a little while to get acclimated," Lesnar said after the bout. When asked about his next step, he said, "One day at a time." Lesnar, 38, is now 6-3 in his pro MMA career that goes back nine years (but includes nearly a half-decade away from the Octagon); the 42-year-old Hall falls to 12-11-1. Cormier: Still the champ Just two days ago, Daniel Cormier, two-time Olympian and Oklahoma State All-American wrestler, thought he would be defending his UFC Light-Heavyweight title against Jon Jones, former junior college wrestling champ ... until it was revealed that Jones had failed a drug test. Instead, all-time great Anderson Silva stepped into the breach, going the distance with the champ who ultimately won a unanimous three-round decision, with all three judges scoring it 30-26. "In the second round, a cascade of boos fell from the rafters; the sellout crowd apparently forgot that it was watching an exhibition instead of a fight," said Sherdog.com. "Silva showed some spark by flicking a few punches and some kicks, and Cormier smiled and walked through it all as if they were pebbles thrown at him. When Silva appeared as if wanted to make it a real fight in the third round, Cormier simply picked up the Brazilian and dropped him. Silva may have even hurt Cormier with a kick late in the third, but Cormier again quelled the threat by tying up the legend and ending it." In its assessment of the bout, MMAMania.com wrote, "Sure, 'The Spider' lost , but he wasn't savagely beaten down and finished. Silva was there to compete for his fans, for his legacy, and for the UFC." After the match, Cormier said, "Hats off to Anderson. I got him with some good elbows early and landed some hard shots, but he just kept going. It's a dangerous fight anytime you face Anderson." Cormier is now 18-1, while Silva drops to 33-8. Velasquez victorious Cain Velasquez, two-time NCAA All-American wrestler for Arizona State in 2004 and 2005, scored a TKO at 4:57 of the first round of his heavyweight match with Travis Browne. "It was a thoroughly dominating performance by the two-time UFC heavyweight champion," is how Sherdog.com succinctly described the bout. In his review of his less than five-minute performance in the Octagon, Velasquez said, "I'm never happy with what I have. My timing was a little off as far as being able to close the distance. Yeah, it's good to get a win, but I always want to be better. It's about improving on those little things as a fighter. That's just the way I am." The former Sun Devil mat star is now 14-2, while Browne comes out at 18-4-1. Dillashaw does it T.J. Dillashaw avenged an October 2013 defeat to Raphael Assuncao as he cruised to a three-round unanimous decision, 30-27, in their bantamweight bout on the preliminary portion of the card. "Assuncao held his own in the standup exchanges but lacked the speed and skill necessary to deal with the former titleholder's footwork and movement," according to Sherdog.com. Dillashaw picked apart the Brazilian from the outside, integrating kicks to the legs, body and head with two-, three- and four-punch combinations. By the time the second and third rounds arrived, Assuncao was bleeding heavily from the nose and mouth." Dillashaw, a three-time NCAA Division I championships qualifier for Cal State-Fullerton, is now 13-3 overall, while Assuncao drops to 23-5. Rough night for Edgar, Hendricks In a main-card match, Frankie Edgar lost a unanimous decision to Jose Aldo for the UFC interim featherweight title, with two judges scoring it 49-46 and one had it 48-47. Edgar, a four-time NCAA qualifier at Clarion University, was busted up by the end of the fifth and final round, bleeding from both eyes. He now drops to 20-5-1. "I feel really good," Aldo said, now 26-2. "This is one step to getting the belt back. The next time you'll see me as the true champion." In a preliminary welterweight bout, former UFC champ Johny Hendricks came out on the losing end of a unanimous decision vs. Kelvin Gastelum. "Stifling forward pressure and heavy punching combinations carried 'The Ultimate Fighter' 17 winner Kelvin Gastelum to a unanimous verdict," Sherdog.com reported. The judges gave the match to Gastelum 29-28, 30-27, and 30-27. Hendricks, two-time NCAA champ for Oklahoma State in 2005 and 2006, is now 17-6, having lost four of his last six bouts, while Gastelum climbs to 12-2.

Two members of the U.S. Olympic team, Robert Smith, and Andy Bisek -- along with two top college wrestling coaches, Jim Zalesky and Doug Schwab -- are among the guests on this Saturday's Takedown Radio, the broadcast announced Friday. Join hosts Scott Casber, Tony Hager, and Brad Johnson this Saturday from 9-11 a.m. live on KXNO.com, IHeartRadio.com and TakedownWrestle.com. Fans, athletes and coaches are invited to participate by calling 866-333-5966 or 515-284-5966. This week's guests include (all times Central): 9:00 a.m.: Robby Smith, U.S. Olympic Greco-Roman Team Member, 130 kilograms/286 pounds 9:20 a.m.: Andy Bisek, U.S. Olympic Greco-Roman Team Member, 75 kilograms/165 pounds 9:35 a.m.: Gene Zanetti, founder of Wrestling Mindset 10:00 a.m.: Gable Steveson, Cadet World Team Member, 100 kilograms/220 pounds 10:15 a.m.: Jim Zalesky, Oregon State University head wrestling coach 10:35 a.m.: Doug Schwab, University of Northern Iowa head coach

Men's wrestling will now join the roster of sports sponsored by the Great Lakes Valley Conference starting with the 2016-17 season, with member wrestling programs vying for a first-ever conference title in the sport next February, the GLVC announced Thursday. Wrestling becomes the 21st intercollegiate sport to be sponsored by the GLVC, which is composed of NCAA Division II schools primarily located in the central U.S. The push to add wrestling to the GLVC's roster of sponsored sports had gained momentum in the past year, with Drury University's announcement in November it would add wrestling for the 2016-17 school year… then, last month, Bellarmine University's move to absorb the former Saint Catharine College mat program which had been competing in the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics), effective this fall. With the new programs at Drury and Bellarmine, there are now seven schools in the GLVC now offering wrestling, exceeding the minimum six programs required by the NCAA for a conference to sponsor a sport, and conduct a conference championship. In addition to the two new mat programs, other GLVC schools that will be competing for the inaugural GLVC conference title include University of Indianapolis, Maryville University, McKendree University, Truman State University and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. The 2016-17 schedule will be announced at a later date. GLVC competition is expected to take place over a three-week period in January and February. The GLVC team title winner shall be decided upon by winning percentage of league matches only; there will not be a postseason tournament. "The Great Lakes Valley Conference is pleased to expand our sports sponsorship with the addition of men's wrestling for the upcoming 2016-17 academic year," said GLVC Commissioner Jim Naumovich. "We are excited to provide the wrestling student-athletes in the league the opportunity to compete for a GLVC Championship and provide a conference home for the seven institutions that sponsor the sport." Wrestling programs that are now part of the GLVC have performed well on the mat in the past. At the 2016 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships, Maryville paced conference members with a fifth-place finish, followed by UW-Parkside and McKendree in seventh and eighth, respectively, while Indianapolis placed 13th. Additionally, GLVC wrestlers claimed two of the 10 individual titles at the 2016 NCAAs: McKendree sophomore Darren Wynn, 141-pound champ, and UW-Parkside redshirt sophomore Nick Becker, 174-pound title winner. Founded in 1978, the Great Lakes Valley Conference consists of sixteen member schools located in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri and Wisconsin. Conference headquarters are located in Indianapolis.

Jordan Burroughs battles Andrew Howe at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Jordan Burroughs has been receiving a lot of attention over the past several months. One of Team USA's biggest stars, Burroughs has been the face of the Polo Ralph Lauren campaign for Rio 2016 and has repped Chobani, Asics and a few other brands. He's been featured in several magazines and is even the subject of upcoming documentaries by two well-known media outlets. As wrestling's most popular figure for the past few years, Burroughs is now showing significant mainstream appeal. This week Burroughs used his platform to speak about the frustrations of many in the African-American community regarding police brutality and the social injustice. The posts came in the wake of the police shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castille, which were caught on camera and watched millions of time via social media. Regardless of how any one reader feels about the police, guns and the situations which prompted Burroughs' response, there is much to admire in Burroughs' standing up for what he believes is an issue that affects his family and friends. He's taking his position as father and role model with seriousness and thoughtfulness. The wrestling community has plenty of opinions, but few quality opinion-makers. Burroughs is one of those opinion-makers and for him to speak up about this type of issue, especially as it would have been easy to cower away during this pre-Olympic period, shows his courage to stand for what he believes is right. To your questions … Q: In 2004, Team USA won six medals (across all three styles) at the Olympic Games. In 2008, the Americans won three medals. Last Olympics, in 2012, Team USA captured four medals. Over/under for Team USA medals in Rio is 5.5. Are you betting over or under 5.5? -- Mike C. Foley: I'll take the over. 1.5 from Greco-Roman 2.5 from women's wrestling 2.5 from men's freestyle I like where you placed that line! Any thoughts from Brian Muir? Q: Looks like a segment of one of Jordan Burroughs' Olympic athlete profile videos was used in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. Taking this plug and Adeline Gray's appearance in the upcoming ESPN Magazine's The Body issue can we assume that USA Wrestling has hit a promotional turning point and expect to see the sport gain more exposure in popular media outlets? -- Jacob R. Foley: Wrestling is very visually pleasing, which lends many creative outlets to lean against our stars in the promotion of the Olympic Games. The highlights are radical, the bodies are in-shape and the characters are even a bit brighter. We speak a lot about Burroughs' fame, but no wrestler has received more media attention in the run-up to the Olympic Games than Adeline Gray. Her feature in the upcoming Body Issue is groundbreaking, but she's also seen write-ups in magazines and websites ranging from women's focused to airlines. In fact, even I have a 4k+ word profile piece on her coming out on ESPN right before the Olympic Games. The women have been wonderfully promoted, as have our freestyle stars. The crew at USA Wrestling has done a phenomenal job getting their athletes front and center for external media. Years of hard work and relationship building has created this opportunity for the athletes and I hope we see it continue to grow. MUTLIMEDIA HALFTIME Second teaser for upcoming documentary on Battsetseg Hamid Soryan: The Long Road to Rio Link: Adeline Gray ESPN Body Issue photos Q: Do you think the World Championships will return to the United States within the next 10 years? -- Mike C. Foley: Sure, why not. Ten years is a pretty long time and the 2015 World Championships were some of the best received in the history of the sport. I don't know how interested USA Wrestling would be in hosting, but I think that the event and fan, athlete and viewer experiences were all top of the line. As far as averages it would be a little quicker than normal. USA had last held it 12 years prior in 2003 and then 7 years prior with the Olympic Games in 1996 and the LA Games in 1984. Q: Do you see Boris Novachkov as a legitimate medal contender in Rio? -- Mike C. Foley: Hard to count out anyone that athletic, but he has struggled to break through against the top five talent at 65 kilos. I'd put him at 10 percent to medal.

Three of the four suspended Norman North High School (Oklahoma) wrestlers accused of sexually assaulting a teammate on a bus in January have had their cases moved to juvenile court, according to multiple media reports Thursday. A Garvin County judge dismissed the felony charge against each of the three wrestlers -- all juveniles, ages 16 and 17 -- and gave prosecutors five days to file new cases in juvenile court, based on a psychological evaluation of each of the juveniles which stated "the acts were willful but appear to be impulsive rather than premeditated and planned." The psychologist who evaluated the three accused juvenile wrestlers stated in his report to the judge that he was told "the activity in question was part of a tradition in wrestling," The Oklahoman -- the daily newspaper for Oklahoma City -- reported. The Pauls Valley Democrat used the phrase "hazing event" in its reporting. The fourth wrestler, 18, was charged as an adult, and is charged with three felony counts of rape by instrumentation. He has pleaded not guilty. His case is scheduled to go to trial Sept. 2. The alleged sexual attacks occurred Jan. 9 as the Norman North High School junior varsity wrestling team returned from a tournament that took place in Pauls Valley, Okla. south of Norman. Prosecutors alleged the offenses began in Garvin County, where Pauls Valley is located. The four defendants are accused of using fingers to rape the two teammates -- 16 and 12 years old -- over their clothing, hence the "rape by instrumentation" charges. As InterMat reported back in February, the 16-year-old victim was reportedly attacked at the back of the bus by three of the suspects. The accused perpetrators allegedly tried to lure the 12-year-old victim to the rear of the bus; when he failed to cooperate, they dragged him to the back of the bus and allegedly raped him there. When the bus returned to Norman North, the 12-year-old was again sexually assaulted two more times -- once in a secluded area next to the building, and in between two parked cars in the school parking lot. The final attack ended when the younger victim's parents arrived to pick him up. Norman Public Schools launched their own investigation, and contacted Norman City Police. A few days later, the school system suspended the accused attackers, and issued the following statement: "An adjunct coach who was responsible for supervising students on the bus was immediately dismissed. A second coach has been suspended pending further investigation." Norman North High School, established in 1997, has an enrollment of approximately 2,300 students. It's one of two public high schools in Norman, Okla., a city of approximately 110,000 located about 20 miles south of downtown Oklahoma City. The third-largest city in the state, Norman is the home to the University of Oklahoma.

Just days before one of the most-anticipated events in the 20+ year history of Ultimate Fighting Championships, one of the headliners for UFC 200, Jon Jones, has failed a drug test, and will not be on the card, according to multiple media reports late Wednesday night. The former UFC light-heavyweight champion had been slated to face current champ Daniel Cormier in the capstone event for this weekend's UFC 200 event in Las Vegas Saturday night. Instead, the Brock Lesnar-Mark Hunt bout will be elevated to top-of-the-card status. MMAFighting.com is reporting that Jones won't be fighting "due to a potential violation in a USADA [US Anti-Doping Agency] drug test administered on June 16." UFC Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance Jeff Novitsky issued a statement, saying that Jones has yet to be declared guilty of the allegations, but, given the proximity of the company receiving the results and the fight itself, there wasn't time to conduct a review, thus necessitating the fight cancellation. "The UFC was notified tonight that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency has informed Jon Jones of a potential anti-doping policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collection on June 16, 2016," Novitzky said. "USADA, an independent administrator of the anti-doping policy, will handle results management and appropriate adjudication of this case. It is important to note that under the UFC anti-doping policy, there is a full, fair legal review process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed. However, because Jones was scheduled to fight Cormier this coming Saturday, July 9 in Vegas, there is insufficient time for a full review before the scheduled bout, and therefore the bout has been removed from the fight card." BloodyElbow.com reported that UFC president Dana White was apparently eating dinner when he got the news of the failed drug test which necessitated the cancellation of one of the biggest, most anticipated pay-per-view MMA events in recent memory. White, who along with the rest of UFC appeared to be blindsided by the stunning turn of events, did not rule out the possibility of finding a new opponent for Cormier on such short notice. "Maybe someone will pop up and fight Cormier at the last minute," White said at a press conference Wednesday night. "Stranger things have happened." Last fall, Jones pleaded guilty to a charge resulting from a hit-and-run crash in Albuquerque earlier in 2015 that injured a pregnant woman. Under terms of the agreement, Jones avoided jail time by agreeing to participate in 72 speaking engagements - one for each week of his probation -- at New Mexico area schools and martial arts centers on how wrong choices can damage an individual's life. Shortly after his arrest, the UFC stripped Jones of his light heavyweight title and suspended him from fighting. Prior to entering MMA, Jones was a New York State wrestling champ for Union-Endicott High School. He won a NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) title while at Iowa Central Community College. Jones' slated opponent at UFC 200, Daniel Cormier, was a two-time NJCAA champ at Colby Community College in Kansas, who then transferred to NCAA Division I powerhouse Oklahoma State where he earned All-American honors at the 2001 NCAAs. The Louisiana native twice earned a place on the US freestyle team for the 2004 and 2008 Olympics. The new main event now features another former college mat star in Brock Lesnar, himself a 1998 NJCAA champ at Bismarck Junior College in North Dakota. Lesnar transferred to University of Minnesota where he was a two-time NCAA finalist, winning the heavyweight title at the 2000 NCAAs.

Alex Tsirtsis, NCAA All-American wrestler at University of Iowa and four-time Indiana high school mat champ, is now head wrestling coach at Mount Carmel High School in Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday. Tsirtsis replaces John Kading, 1996 NCAA champ for University of Oklahoma, who has accepted the head coaching job at Leyden High School in suburban Chicago after five years at the helm of the Mt. Carmel Caravan wrestling program which was nationally ranked last season and placed third in Class 2A at the Illinois state championships. In fact, when Kading announced his departure, he recommended Tsirtsis for the position to Mount Carmel athletic director Dan LaCount. "Alex's name came up right away," LaCount told the Tribune. "He was No. 1 on our list and we approached him immediately." As someone who grew up just across the Illinois-Indiana state line in Griffith, Ind., Tsirtsis is familiar with the Mount Carmel mat legacy, and how the IHSA - the governing body for high school sports in Illinois -- allows its teams to travel and compete in tournaments across the country. "I live in Northwest Indiana, and I think in Illinois, they're a little more competitive on the national scene," Tsirtsis said. "As far as the IHSA is involved, they give less restrictions on travel, which was pretty intriguing for me from a competition standpoint." LaCount also cited Tsirtsis' residing just across the Chicago Skyway from Mount Carmel, located straight south of the Chicago Loop, as a positive factor. "We love the fact that he lives in Northwest Indiana and that he has a great pipeline to that area," LaCount said. "He was receptive right away." Tsirtsis wrestled at Griffith High School, where he compiled a flawless 236-0 record and took home four Indiana state titles. He then headed west on I-80 to Iowa City, where, as an Iowa Hawkeye, Tsirtsis was a four-time Big Ten Conference Championships place winner (2005-2009), and earned All-American honors by placing seventh at 141 pounds at the 2006 NCAA Championships. In addition, as co-founder of the Region Wrestling Academy in nearby Gary, Ind., Tsirtsis brings coaching experience to the Caravan mat program. "It's about finding the right people and designing your program so these kids love the sport but still get the training they need," Tsirtsis said. "You'll have your studs and then the guys just trying wrestling out. I wanna grow the sport. I want the guys to love it for the rest of their lives." Located on the south side of Chicago, Mount Carmel is an all-male, four-year high school run by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. Founded in 1900, Mount Carmel has 850 students.

BAKERSFIELD, Calif.-- CSU Bakersfield director of athletics Kenneth "Ziggy" Siegfried has announced the successful completion of the national search and the hiring of former University of Minnesota All-American Manny Rivera as head wrestling coach at CSUB. Rivera, a four-time letter winner at Minnesota and member of the 2007 NCAA National Championship team, has been the lead assistant at Big-12-member North Dakota State University in Fargo, N.D. for the last five years. Rivera becomes just the fourth head coach all-time for CSUB, replacing Mike Mendoza who took over as head coach at Boise State last month. "Our goal in this national search was to find an individual who would continue to build on our strong wrestling tradition, while embracing our department's vision of promoting academic excellence, providing an outstanding student-athlete experience, pursuing competitive success, and engaging the Bakersfield community. I am thrilled to say we have found that person in coach Manny Rivera," Siegfried said. "I want to commend our wrestling sport supervisor and associate athletics director Karen Langston for her efforts in leading this search." Rivera, a native of El Monte, Calif., will be returning to his home state to lead the Roadrunners, a team that finished with a Pac-12 best 4-1 record last season in dual competitions and sent five student-athletes to the NCAA Nationals in New York. "As a product of California and having wrestled there I am looking forward to getting back and working in the state," Rivera said. "The wrestlers in California are phenomenal and I look forward to working with them." As an assistant coach, Rivera assisted two NCAA All-Americans and 11 NCAA National qualifiers during his five seasons at NDSU. The Bison also won the 2015 Western Wrestling Conference dual and tournament championships while finishing in the Top-25. Prior to that, he coached at the University of Virginia and was a graduate assistant at his alma mater Minnesota while earning his Master's Degree in Sports Management from 2008-2010. Rivera says a familiarity with the wrestling history at CSUB was one of the main attractions to this position. "For me it's been a goal to run my own program and be the head coach, specifically at CSUB," he said. "I grew up just a couple hours away so I am familiar with the tradition, it's strong and I know the support for the program from the community, the alumni and administration is hard to beat and its some of the best that I've seen." While a graduate assistant for the Gophers, he also served as the assistant director at the School of Champions, a wrestling training program for junior high and high school students. Additionally, he was a volunteer wrestling coach at Rosemead High School. "Coach Rivera is a great addition to the CSUB staff and his experience will provide outstanding leadership for our student-athletes," Langston said. "He has competed and coached at a high level and our student athletes will benefit greatly from that. I'd like to thank the community supporters who served on the search committee for their contributions throughout the process and I'd like to recognize our wresting team members for their patience and professionalism as we completed the search." As well as coaching, Rivera brings several accolades as a grappler himself, he was a three-time NCAA qualifier at Minnesota and earned All-America honors as a senior after finishing seventh at 141 pounds at the NCAA Championships. He was also a starter on Minnesota's 2007 national championship team. He finished his career with a record of 113-40 and 27 pins and was team captain as a senior. Now as a head coach Rivera hopes to instill what made him successful on the mat into the student-athletes he will be coaching at CSUB with an approach based around toughness. "I'm pretty old school and I want to have some of the toughest guys out there when they step on the line," he said. "We're going to be aggressive and it doesn't matter who we are wrestling, we're going to be tough and it's going to be a dogfight." Rivera will officially be introduced at a community reception next week following his arrival in Bakersfield and completion of the hiring process.

Ron Finley, former Oregon State wrestler, Olympian and long-time head wrestling coach at the now-defunct University of Oregon wrestling program, died Tuesday morning after a long battle with cancer. He was 75. Ron FinleyFinley's on-the-mat career was impressive in accomplishment and scope. He won back-to-back Oregon high school state titles at Newburg in 1957 and 1958, then headed to Corvallis to wrestle at Oregon State for legendary head coach Dale Thomas. As a Beaver wrestler, Finley made it to the 137-pound finals of the 1961 NCAA championships in his home gym, placing second to Michigan State's Norm Young. Finley then focused on international competition, first earning a spot on the U.S. Greco-Roman national team in 1961. He placed fourth at the World Championships in 1962 and 1963, then sixth at the 1966 Worlds at 63 kilograms/138.75 pounds. Finley made the 1964 U.S. Olympic team, placing fourth in his weight class at the Tokyo Games, one of the highest placers on the U.S. Greco squad. In 1970, Finley took the reins of the University of Oregon, and remained head coach for 28 years until stepping down in 1998. In that time, Finley led the Ducks to an overall dual-meet record of 309-186-8. Three of his teams won conference titles; 42 Ducks won individual conference crowns. Finley also served as the coach of the U.S. Greco-Roman team at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. That Finley-led squad earned a total of four medals, including gold medals for Steve Fraser and the late Jeff Blatnick, according to his bio in the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame where he was inducted in 1982. More than once, Finley was credited with saving wrestling at Oregon when the program was slated to be eliminated for financial reasons. He met with a university vice president and athletic director Rick Bay in 1981 to keep the program off the chopping block. "He told me a story about sliding an envelope across the table because he saw it once in a movie," Chuck Kearney, who wrestled for Finley at Oregon before serving as his assistant and then replacing him as coach following his mentor's retirement, told the Eugene (Ore.) Register-Guard. "In the envelope, he wrote down the number of what it would cost to run the program. They were impressed with how low the number was and said, ‘Plus your salary?' He said, ‘No, my salary is included.' "We dodged that bullet." "He had a great balance of being a coach, being tough on you when he had to be tough, and at the same time being one of the finest human beings and caring about everyone," said Kevin Roberts, a two-time all-American under Finley at Oregon who is now the associate head coach at Oregon State. "As a coach, the thing I always remember from Fin is that all these guys are trying their best and they want to be the best they can be. "That's the biggest thing I take from him is the way he treated his athletes. Whether you're an all-American or fourth-string, just treat them well." In addition to his accomplishments as wrestler and coach, Finley was a tireless champion for the sport in his native Oregon. In recent years, he had fought to get wrestling reinstated at Oregon. The Ducks dropped the sport in 2007. In addition, Finley headed up the Save Oregon Wrestling Federation, as well as executive director of the National Wrestling Restoration Foundation, whose goal was to prevent further cuts to collegiate wrestling programs. "He's going to be missed," NWRF president Paul Fenley told The Oregonian. "The wrestling community has lost a great man. He was one of those figures that everyone looked to as a guiding light. His entire life was wrestling. He didn't go off and do business or get into sales. He dedicated his entire life to the sport. Everything is wrestling with this guy." Through the NWRF, Finley and Fenley launched the Zero Quit clothing brand, whose proceeds go directly into a fund to create an endowment for an Oregon wrestling program. "I guess the best way to put it, when Ron Finley was a wrestler he won because he was tough," said Chuck Kearney. "He refused as an athlete to give in. As an athlete that defines who he was, and he coached the same way. When he was fighting cancer, it was the same way. "He just refused to give in." Finley is survived by his wife, Linda, a son, Michael, and a daughter, Kelly Sopp. Memorial services were still being planned as of Tuesday night.

Wrestling announcer Sandy Stevens and legendary University of Northern Iowa wrestler Rich Powers will be featured guests on this week's edition of the On The Mat wrestling broadcast on Wednesday, July 6. In addition to being considered "the voice of amateur wrestling," Stevens is a supporter of UNI athletics and most notably wrestling, launching the "Pledges for Pins" program at UNI in 2007 and, along with her late husband Bob "Bear" Stevens created an endowment for the head wrestling coaching position. Powers was a three-time NCAA Division I All-American for the UNI Panthers (1990-92) at 177 pounds. He compiled a 134-25-1 record with 54 pins, placing him third all-time in program history. Both Stevens and Powers will be welcomed into the Northern Iowa Athletics Hall of Fame on Sept. 10. On the Mat is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at 1650thefan.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday at 5 p.m. Central on AM 1650, The Fan. A podcast of the show is available on Mat Talk Online.